New Birdhouses

Just wanted to stop by real quick and give you a sneak peek of the birdhouses I just listed on Etsy:) 

Hope you like them:)

www.katiesclaycorner@etsy.com

Kitty Teeth and Mini Birdhouses

I just love when you look over and see kitty teeth.... They're just sooo cute:)

As you can see.... Wilbur is keeping me company.

I've been busy making birdhouses. I'm working on a custom order, so while I had the materials out.... I made some for my shop, too. I've also come across some new nail stickers.... and thought we'd have time for a photo montage....

Starting with this set of green houses with green flowers.... These are flat on the back so they can easily be attached to the wall.

As I was coming back inside... I saw that my tea-rose bush had one bloom... So I decided to use it as a back drop.... Here's a teal blue house with a yellow butterfly.... Love the pink against the blue:)

Here's a little blue house with a white hibiscus flower.

Or what about the blue against this orange day lily?

Even this little green birdhouse with it's red butterfly looks good in this flower:)

Out blackberries are coming in... in abundance! this year.... I can't wait to eat one!

...and as you can see, I have hid another birdhouse in there..... I like playing around with these kind of pictures!


And last but not least.... My hosta plants.... I love when they're blooming like this! And I really like the blue birdhouse against the white flowers....

My goal is to have these listed this weekend... First I gotta take some normal pictures, lol.

So...
until next time.......

4 Birdhouses listed! Check!

Well.... the dr appt went about normal. I had a new intern today... so I got to explain my story once again... I always love confusing the newbies, lol! When the Doctor finally came in he asked the intern what he thought, the poor fella said, ' I dunno, I'm still trying to wrap my head around all of it!" I had to laugh.... My thoughts exactly! No new news.... They're still waiting on my biopsy results(they're testing my nerve functions)... and are changing my meds to see what kind of difference it makes. Sounds like fun, huh. So.... yeah..... Nothing exciting....

Now on to the birdhouses.... I have 4 listed. 3 on stands...
You can find the link here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/katiesclaycorner

And one on a table....

And then sometime this week.... I gotta put these on stands. I'm getting a good workout from all that sawing- might even have bigger biceps by the time I'm done, lol.

I also keep getting side tracked.... While cutting out the molding, I seen something that I thought was a good idea.... Hopefully I can get a quick tutorial up some time this week for everyone:) Let's see.... what else..... Ohh- I ordered something the other day that is going to help me make some really cool signs:) But you'll have to wait on that.....

OK...

Until Next Time.......

I think I'm in love....

Sorry, I've been quiet ........ I had an idea........

And just let me apologize now for all the pics I'm about to show you:)

Earlier this week, I went to the library and got a few books on Real scale birdhouses.... I wanted to make something more complex.... and needed some ideas. In another post I'll show you the books I got.... But for now.... I want to show you this.....

The idea came from a book, but I have no clue how to convert measurements, so the design is mine. I ABSOLUTELY Love this birdhouse. I love the color of it.... I love how the aging technique worked out...

Doesn't it look like it's been outside forever........

There's lots of layers of paint in this... Lots of sanding, and lots of Love!

However, when I was making it, I forgot I was doing it for a dollhouse, and thought about how it would be in real life, So I put it on a post.....

But have no fear! I made another one on a stand, just have to do the finishing touches on it and it should get listed sometime this weekend:)

**I plan on listing my new 'pink' houses, too this weekend, just don't know if I should sell them as groups or individually. I also made a few shadow boxes... painted them brown, and now can't figure out if I should age them, or leave them so other people can paint them they way they want them painted.... Any suggestions welcome:)

Alrighty then.... I got a birdhouse to finish.......

Happy Friday:)

Until Next Time....

I don't know how I forgot the pink??

When I was putting some of my birdhouses away, I noticed I didn't make any pink birdhouses.. And You know I gotta have a pink one, so...... I made some more houses:)

I've been using what ever I can find to finish these. Clock parts, tiny screws... more nail stickers...And Earrings..... Now if I could just find my wire cutters~ I've looked every where..and I just can't find them~ It's actually been driving me nuts that I can't find them, and I can't even tell you how much time I've spent looking for them, Uggg!!

Don't forget to make the pictures bigger so you can see all the details... There's actually 2 birdhouses on the bottom 'shelf' that have stickers on them. The peach one has a peach flower in the middle...and the pink one all the way to the right has a white flower design...

I'm really loving these 'pink' ones..... When I find my wire cutters, I plan on using some earring studs for their posts.... They're gonna be so pretty:)

SO.......

~I bought some wood this past week to make some shadow boxes:)

~ I don't suggest eating chips while working on your birdhouses, cause before you know it, one of those potato chips is going to be supper hard, and then you'll realize that you just tried to eat a birdhouse! Yeah.... You can laugh.... I did!

~My darling sweet mother spent some time in her yard Saturday morning collecting acorns for me...She left them on their outside table while she went to run errands.... And when she came back, the acorns were gone... But 'Those Darn squirrels left you the caps' LMAO~ Poor Momma! Didn't realize you were setting up a buffet, did you?? LOL

~I just recently discovered the world of Victoria Plum, and would die to get my hands on some of the books! Which brings me to my next thought....

~Shhhh... this one is a secret though..... I bought the Hedgehog family(You know~ The Calico Critters!!) this weekend. I totally couldn't help myself...They bring back so many childhood memories of my biological father!! Our cats used to drag them in, and if he could, my dad would nurse them back to health and release them elsewhere..... I just had to have this family when I saw them in the catalog... and when I went birthday shopping, there they were. It was fate:) ...OK, You ready for this, LMAO~ They're gonna need a house! OH MY..... Hahaha.... Oh what to do??!!
~Oh... and I put a sofa kit up on Etsy... and a couple of ages chess pieces:)

SO

Until Next Time.........

Happy Halloween!

And Happy 'Belated' Birthday to my youngest. His official birthday was yesterday, but we tend to celebrate it on Halloween. Before things get crazy around here, I wanted to stop by and wish everyone a Happy Halloween!

I even made a birdhouse to celebrate. No, it's not mini.... It's for my front porch. It was one of those $2 birdhouse from AC Moore's that I had picked up. The handle is a drawer pull I took off my neighbors dresser that he was throwing away. WHat!! Those things are expensive, and I think I got about 20:) ...lol... I was out there early one morning, using a little girl's barrette(someone had left it in one of the drawers) to unscrew each one, lol....glad no one saw me:)


...Yup, I'm still crackling over here... Would you believe my jug of medium is half way gone:(

...I painted the house with 2 coats of dark brown paint, then 2 coats of crackle medium went on, then the top coat of paint was applied. After everything dried, I went back and 'aged' it~ I took the Dremel to it:) Then I went back and inked where I had dremeled~ this adds even more character to it:) When the ink was dry, I sprayed the whole thing with an acrylic sealer. ((Actually, these are the same steps I use when I'm making my mini birdhouses.))

I really like how this turned out.....

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you and your family have a Safe Halloween!

I'm off to get those last minute details done, And then it's time to Party:)

**Before you leave though, You should stop by and say Hello at the Party that Kat The Hat Lady is hosting.... You can find it here:) http://katthehatladyhalloweenhouse.blogspot.com/

Until next Time:)

Random Pics today....

Happy Friday Everyone!
Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend ahead of them. I'm hoping that today's weather comes back again, It was beautiful today:)

I'm still working on my little birdhouses ..... and/or houses.... And have listed a few more on Etsy earlier. These 2 will be up tomorrow, once I go back and paint that roof! Didn't realize I hadn't done it until I got them on the computer. I really like these ones! Very Girlie, and yet it has that Gothic touch.....


And I made a few more Halloween ones...


Thought you might like to see the Stickers that I ordered from Etsy! Aren't they Beautiful. Anyone who knows me knows I LOVE Dragonflies!! So how could I resist! You can find similar ones here: http: www.etsy.com/shop/PoshGirlBoutique And of course you can order them to say anything you'd like!


And how about a kitty pic or 2.
Here's Wilbur dangling from the side of the couch. Yup! He jumps up, sinks his teeth into it, and hangs there....lol.... That's Jasper looking down at him trying to figure out what he's doing! Crazy kitty!!!


And one last pic.... Of Boogs!
This is Fred's brother, who hopefully will come inside permanently one day. He's the sweetest cat I've ever met!! And look at those whiskers, Have you ever seen em' that long before. Isn't he just beautiful!! Good Ole Boogers!! ((He was investagating me taking pictures of minis the other day, and I thought I'd get a couple of him! ....I swear he was posing for me:))

Until Next Time...............

Halloween Birdhouses

Thought I'd make a few Halloween Birdhouses to go with my other ones. One day I'll pull out Katie's Corner and show you where they're all going..... But for now, Here's a few that I have listed on my Etsy Page.

I'm also gonna talk about this darn Crackle Paint..... Last week Americana paint was on sell, so I picked up a few bottles in Halloween colors. I came home, and tried to crackle some sticks.... But had No luck. I thought maybe I wasn't using a thick enough coat of crackle medium, so I went back and repainted them, using 2 thick coats of medium.... and Still... Nothing!! At this point, I assumed it wasn't me, and it was the paint I was using, so I started all over again..... This time using Folk Art brand paint, and I had NO problems...... strange, huh!! Think I'll be sticking to the Folk Art when I crackle from now on.... Americana is good paint, gives me a pretty even coat, it just won't crackle?! So....

Remember the bookcase I refinished not to long ago? Remember the hardware I took off the doors?? Well, that's what I'm using on the purple birdhouses..... worked out pretty well, don't ya think?? I used the same knobs on the orange ones that I had used once before, But this time I painted them black. I also went back and highlighted the raised areas with gold paint, to make it stand out a bit more.

You can see the gold highlights in the following picture...

Then I broke out some of those (finger) nail stickers we have:) I used a cut down dollhouse shingle for the roof... and highlighted the edges to give it an aged appearance.

I just love this little skull!!

But this one has got to be my favorite!!! It's a Kitty over cross bones. Isn't it awesome:) One of these will be going to live in Cora's Gothic Room!!

Believe it or not, I still have a pile of houses to get listed, and another batch ready to get started after that... We'll see how long it takes me to get bored of it???

Until Next Time...

Today's Birdhouses

Just wanted to show you the birdhouses I finished today..... These were really easy, but once again time consuming. Keeps me on the couch resting though:)


...yeah! There's more. LOL.... I wanted smaller ones....


The one in the middle is the smallest.... And the one with the 6 holes is the biggest~ doesn't it remind you of a Lego?

I think I'm over the birdhouses for now?! Guess I should get back to thinking about that dress form. Thank-you for your tips.... I will let you know where I went with it when I finish it:)

So..... Until Next Time

Another use for drawer pulls...

Hello! The rain is back:( I was really hoping the sun would come out this week so I could get some outside pictures taken, but no luck..... And speaking of luck...... Went to get my oldest yesterday from his Grandmother's... and he had picked up a cold. And wouldn't you know by the time we got home, I too had the cold! WTF?? I'm not going to fuss about it, cause this is my happy place, but I feel yucky!!

OK>...Now on to the good stuff!! I told you last week, that I was working on some birdhouses, and now that they're done, I can show them to you:) Whatcha think?? .......me, I'm in love with the blue ones.....


But only because I got to use some left over drawer pulls for the perches:) I really, really like them!! lol.... did you notice that I haven't put away the crackle paint yet?? LOL... It's just soooo addictive! Hahaa Oh, I used earring backs on the yellow houses.... and on the green ones, I cut of the tip of a Popsicle stick and glued it to it.


And a pic to give you a little perspective on size. This is my tallest birdhouse.....

And a pic to show you the steps in these... Really easy, just time consuming. If you have any questions, just ask..... I'm hoping to just get away with the picture at this point:)

And here's today's project. Remember the dress form I showed you in my last post? Well....Here's where I'm at with it. First though~ Let me tell you that I spent the other night going through pictures online to figure out what I wanted! And I looked at hundreds of pictures!! I also kept a list of what I liked about what I saw.... and then went from there....

So

~I cut off the bottom.... and crackled painted it. I also painted the top piece and the wheels gold. Then I found a piece of lace that I liked and glued it around the waist. Wish I hadn't of glued it as tight as I did.... but I'm working with it. Next I'm going to put a ribbon around her waist, but I'm having a hard time tying a bow..... Well, tying a bow that I like. I also want to put some beads around her neck, but can't seem to find a string that lays right..... Any suggestions, Please?? What kind of thread do you use in miniatures?? Fishing line ain't cutting it, lol!

Hopefully I can get this dumb bow tied today, and have a finished project to show you tomorrow, but we shall see. All I really want to do is go back to bed!

So, Until Next Time....

the 2 little birdhouses

OK... Can someone turn off the rain! It's been raining all week, and I'm a little over it! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE THE RAIN......But this is a bit much! ..... I've written this blog once already....the power went out, and I lost the post! But I'm back......
........So............
I only got 2 birdhouses done yesterday.... I used the lefts overs from the signs I've been making. I haven't showed you the other signs I made yet (The rain has totally killed my picture taking skills...Everything is just so dark!) .......I used the tongue compressor sticks to do these. Not used sticks, but I guess you could use those, too..... You can buy a 'fresh' bag from the craft store:) Anyways..... Here they are in all their glory... As you can tell, I'm not all that thrilled with them, but they will work...... I made some different ones today, but they still need roofs.... I probably won't get to them though until later in the weekend. Tomorrow, I have to spend the day with the doctors...and then Saturday..... Get this!!! There's actually going to be a dollhouse show in my town!! Well, not in my town, about an hour away, and I'm excited.... I just hope the 'tests' tomorrow don't wear me out too much! I really, really want to go to the show!!!

Next is the bottle of crackle medium I've been using.... I do believe it came from Michael's, but It was quite some time ago! I've used it a lot, and I've only been through 1/4 of the bottle.... It seems to last forever.

And then we have kitty pics! I have LOTS of kitty pics, just don't want to go overboard with this whole sharing thing...SO here are a few of my favorites:

First is Jasper........ He's upside down because that is how he was sleeping.... He's soooo freaking sweet!

And what about another pic of Freddy? Here he is sleeping in a brown paper bag full of magazines...

And then there's Rufus (Fred and Jasper's Daddy!) .....Ever time I see this pic in my picture file, it cracks me up! I just love how they sit on their butts like this..... so funny!

Ok then...Here's me wishing all of you a wonderful weekend!! :)

Until Next Time...........